Hello!
For a long time, the thought of buying myself a simple and inexpensive laptop that you can take with you to perform any simple tasks on the road did not leave me, since the main 17-inch laptop did not have mobility. The first thought was to buy some kind of netbook, of which different manufacturers managed to produce a 'wagon and a small cart'. Knowing the realities of our market, I did not hope to find a device in Russian retail at any reasonable price, so out of habit I turned my gaze to my favorite American online auction eBay.
Considering the fact that I do not need powerful graphics and music editors, and other similar applications, I thought that the range of tasks that the device would solve is rather narrow. I need a device for typing, editing simple documents, viewing mail, videos, youtube and surfing the Internet. Started searching with previous generations of ultrabooks. The result puzzled me. The price for more or less acceptable options started at $ 250, which, given the use case, was impractical. Continuing my search, I became convinced that more or less acceptable options rarely appear cheaper than the $ 300 threshold.
Having noted all this for myself, I remembered about one Google product that never took off in Russia – Chromebook. They should be inexpensive. And the chance to try something new added enthusiasm.
When I started searching on eBay, I was faced with a huge spike in prices, ranging from $ 35 to $ 500. At the same time, for the same price, devices were offered in a state ranging from 'like new' to a state of 'probably will not fall apart along the way'.
The logic behind eBay's pricing remains an incomprehensible mystery to me. But, on the other hand, it plays into our hands – there is always a chance to 'snatch' a great option for almost nothing.
You can search either by model, if you know exactly what you need, or by device type. I searched for the word Chromebook and added the manufacturer's name, like 'chromebook acer', etc. Then he sorted the result according to the principle 'from the cheapest price + shipping' and reviewed the results, carefully reading the description.
Order
After searching, which took me three days, I stumbled upon a seller who was selling used Samsung Chromebooks that were previously used in American schools. The description included such defects as scratches on the case, the absence of some keys and the power supply. Having weighed all the pros and cons, and having monitored the prices for the spare parts I was interested in (550 rubles a new keyboard and 350 rubles a power supply), I decided to take a chance. The price bribed me – for a device based on a Core i5 with 4GB of RAM and a 32GB SSD, the seller asked $ 49 plus $ 9.90 for shipping within the United States. In addition, there was an opportunity to offer my own price, which I did not fail to take advantage of. Deciding not to be too impudent, he offered a price of $ 39.90 and began to wait, not really hoping for a result. Literally five hours later, I received a notification in the mail that my offer was accepted, and the seller is ready to send me the device immediately after payment. Hurrah! ?
I paid by indicating the address of the American intermediary for delivery and waited. In parallel, I bought a keyboard and a power supply.
The Chromebook was sent by the seller on the same day, and two days later was at the intermediary (once again admired the work of the US post office). But the keyboard and power supply lagged because the sellers were in no hurry to ship them. Since the group shopping service was used for delivery, there was no way to wait for the keyboard and the unit to arrive. So I gave the middleman the go-ahead to send the Chromebook without waiting for the keyboard and power supply.
First impressions
14 days of anxious waiting and now I have it. The first step was an inspection and assessment of the appearance. It's not that bad. Several keys are missing, but the keyboard has been ordered and will arrive soon. Few scratches on the case and frayed corners.
I expected the worst and was preparing to spend another 700 rubles on a new building, but after inspection I decided not to spend money yet.
The dimensions did not disappoint.
12 inches of matte screen with a resolution of 1,280,800 pixels, thickness of about 2 cm, and weight of 1.4 kg.
Ideally, except for the weight, they could have made it a little easier. However, the weight is primarily due to the size of the battery, which is enough for 5-7 hours of battery life, provided that the battery is far from new – an excellent result.
Outwardly, the Chromebook is most reminiscent of Samsung's third and fifth series ultrabooks. The continuity of the design is felt.
Plastic housing with aluminum elements (cover and surface under the keyboard). The island-style keyboard itself with a soft stroke and clear clicks. Large touchpad with no dedicated buttons that can be pressed anywhere.
Of the interfaces, two full-size USB ports, a 'telephone' audio jack that allows you to connect a headset from a phone, a jack for connecting external image display devices such as other laptops and projectors (Display Port), as well as a slot for a USB flash drive and, attention, a SIM slot -card. Yes, it has its own cellular module and it works.
Considering that this 'Chromebook' is built on the basis of a processor on the X86 platform, there are thoughts in the future to try to install a full-fledged Windows 7 or 10. And if you keep in mind that the amount of RAM can be increased to 8Gb, the hard drive is only limited by your needs, installing Windows looks like a worthwhile step.
Also, you can install both Linux and Ubuntu. You can find many instructions on the network with a detailed description of the process, the most important thing is to find and download the necessary drivers.
If you don't bother, there is always the possibility of working with a remote desktop, after installing the appropriate application.
I will definitely try all the options. In the meantime, I decided that for the first time I had enough opportunities Chrome OS.
conclusions
I am once again surprised by the pricing in the Russian market. To buy the same thing in Russia, you will most likely have to spend 40-50%, or even 100% more. And this despite the fact that our salaries are significantly lower than in the United States. At the moment, the process of “tightening the nuts” has been launched by retailers in order to protect their business from much more profitable foreign purchases (Eldar Murtazin spoke in detail about this situation in Spillikins).
How it will end is unknown, but the trend is not encouraging. While there is an opportunity, I do not plan to buy anything from electronics in Russian retail. Despite the difficulties with delivery and risks, buying abroad, at the moment, remains much more profitable than buying a house. And besides the difference in price, there is still an opportunity to buy something that is not sold in Russia at all.
Taking into account the cost of delivery, as well as the cost of buying a new keyboard and power supply, the device cost me 4300 rubles. Not bad for a compact 12-inch Core i5 laptop with 4Gb of RAM. The only negative is the operating system, which looks more like a browser. Although I plan to eliminate this shortcoming over time. ?
It is still not worth considering the Chromebook as the main device. This is an additional tool that allows you to perform simple tasks. But, if you are friends with the Internet and are not afraid of such concepts as the 'command line', it will not be difficult for you to make their 'Chromebook', bought 'for a penny', a full-fledged laptop that can become your main device.
P.S. After I came to visit my parents and showed them a Chromebook, my mother asked me to order the same one – she really liked the price-performance ratio, and for her use case it was generally an ideal option.